by A L Fraine
“So, not all of them?”
“Hunter’s a dick, Naomi’s a prissy cow, but Kay’s okay, and so is Chris.”
“You don’t like Hunter, then?”
“That’s what I just said, innit?”
Kate bit her lip to keep from answering her back. “It’s important we know about all the relationships in the office, in case they have any influence on this case, so I was just trying to clarify your statement.”
“Sure, let me make it clearer for you. He’s a fuckin’ dick. Thinks he’s better than everyone else and he makes it clear how much he dislikes me. Okay?”
“So, he bullies you?” Kate asked, interested.
“I guess,” Robyn answered, suddenly dismissive after her outburst.
“What about Jordan? Does he know about this?”
Robyn sighed. “Yeah, he knew.”
“You told him?”
“He’s seen it happen. He didn’t stop it. He laughed at it once. I complained to him a while back, but he didn’t do anything about it.”
“So he joins in with Hunter?”
“I don’t think he sees the harm. I think he sees it as office banter, but…”
“…but it’s not.” Kate finished for her and wrote ‘motive’ in her notepad.
Robyn shook her head. “I hate him sometimes.”
“Who? Hunter or Jordan?”
“Take your pick,” Robyn answered.
“Have you spoken to anyone about this? Kay Seward, maybe?” Kate asked.
“What difference would that make? Anyway, he’s dead now.”
“Does Patrick know?”
Robyn nodded. “I told him. He got angry about it, but what can we do?”
“I understand,” Kate answered, and glanced at the sword on the shelf, running through the evidence in her mind. There were occult influences everywhere. There was a reason for her and Patrick to hate Jordan, and there was an interest in dangerous weapons.
“I see you like your heavy metal,” Nathan cut in.
“Yeah, so what?” Robyn answered, clearly unhappy with this new line of questioning before it had even really begun.
“You’re into the occult too? I see you’re wearing the same pentagram necklace I saw on you yesterday,” Kate added.
“What’s that got to do with anything?”
“Just answer the question please,” Nathan barked.
“Yeah, I’m into Wicca and Paganism a bit. So what?”
“What about Satanism?” Kate asked, keen to drill into this a little more as memories of her aunt’s murder and its parallels with this case swam to the forefront of her mind.
“What? No. That would require me to believe in Christianity, which I don’t.”
“You don’t?”
“No. I’m not some crazy Satanist. Wicca is about living in harmony with your environment. We praise life and spirit and believe in helping people.”
Kate nodded but didn’t answer. It wasn’t what she’d been expecting, but her suspicion wasn’t on Robyn.
“Whose sword is that?” Nathan asked.
Kate looked up and caught Nathan glancing at her with a quick wink.
“That’s my boyfriend’s. That’s not mine.”
“Is he a martial artist?” Nathan pressed.
“No. He just likes it, I guess.”
Does he? Kate thought, adding that to the strikes against Patrick’s name.
“He needs to be careful with that. Don’t go walking around outside with it.”
“As if. We’re not morons you know,” Robyn answered him as Kate stepped away and looked around. Approaching the kitchen, she spotted a curious shape tucked into a corner on the counter and moved to get a better look.
It was a bong. Kate raised an eyebrow and turned back to Robyn. “Do you use drugs often?”
“Not really,” Robyn answered.
“It stinks of marijuana in here,” Nathan stated.
“Flavoured incense,” Robyn replied with a grin, pointing to the pot on the table with several incense sticks inside it.
“But you’ve smoked it?” Kate asked.
Robyn sighed. “Alright, yes. I’ve had some before. Is that what you want to hear?”
“Have you tried anything else?”
“Don’t remember,” Robyn answered.
Kate sighed.
“Alright, I think we’ve heard enough,” Nathan said. “Kate?”
“Yeah, I agree,” Kate said, looking down at her notes and the clear suspicion it placed squarely on the shoulders of Robyn’s boyfriend. “We’ll be in touch, Miss Boyce,” she said, checking the time and wondering how quickly they could get into town.
She had some pointed questions to ask Patrick Norman.
Leaving the flat, Kate dropped into the passenger seat and looked over at Nathan. “Did you reach the same conclusion as me?”
“You think Patrick Norman did it?”
“And you don’t?” Kate asked incredulously.
“I don’t know, something doesn’t fit here,” Nathan replied, frowning in concentration.
“What? What do you mean? We have Robyn clearly being bullied by Hunter and Jordan. She told her boyfriend who’s a drug user and clearly has an interest in the occult and bladed weapons. What doesn’t fit?”
“I don’t know. It’s just not what I thought…” Nathan explained.
“Not what you thought? Did you think something else was going on?”
“I don’t know. Maybe?”
“Is this the conspiracy stuff the other detectives warned me about?” she asked, getting a clearer idea of how his views might taint the investigation.
“So, they spoke to you then?”
“Briefly.”
Nathan sighed. “No, you’re right. It all fits. We definitely need to speak with Patrick Norman.”
“Good,” Kate said, feeling her trust in Nathan, built up through the events of the past day and a half, crumble just a little bit. Was DI Sam Mason right about Nathan? Would he potentially ruin her career if he followed his prejudices? She’d need to keep an eye on things better.
“Where did she say he worked?”
CHAPTER 13
As Nathan placed a Police Identification Card in the window of their unmarked car—in case any parking wardens got any ideas—Kate climbed out onto the pedestrianised road in central Guildford. They were less than ten metres from the front of Riverstone’s Bookshop, but didn’t want to park right outside of it.
“Alright, do you think he’s in there?” Kate asked. The drive over had been a quiet one, with the only meaningful conversation being their call to dispatch to inform them of their plan of action.
They wanted to bring Patrick in and ask him a few questions.
“Let’s hope so,” Nathan said, sounding a little brighter. “You’re good at this, you know. You’ll go far.”
Kate felt her smile grow and a flush of heat in her cheeks. “Shut it, you’ll make my head swell.”
“At least then I’ll be able to get through the door before you and make the arrest.”
“Steal my glory? I don’t think so,” she answered him as they walked in the entrance of the shop. It was busy, there were shoppers everywhere, and after a quick sweep around, it wasn’t clear where Patrick Norman might be. The shop was deep with several floors, and that wasn’t counting the staff areas out back. He could be anywhere.
“What do you think?” Kate asked.
“Let’s speak to the girl on the till. See if she knows where he is.”
Kate nodded and followed Nathan over to the side of the counter, where the young woman was serving people.
“Miss?” Nathan said, holding his warrant card where she could clearly see it. Kate did the same. “Do you have a second?”
The girl looked at the identification cards, a look of surprise crossing her face. “Um, sure,” she said and handed some change to the customer she’d been serving before telling the next one to wait a moment. “What’s up?”
/> “We’re looking for one of your colleagues, Patrick Norman,” Nathan said.
“Pat?”
“That’s right. Do you know where he is?”
“Yeah, he’s over…” she began, craning her neck to look back towards the front entrance. Kate turned to see a young man holding some books stand up from where he’d been crouched, stacking shelves. He wore the same polo shirt as the girl with the shop's logo on his chest and stood staring at them. He was tall, thin, with long-ish dyed-black hair, and a nose ring and he was staring at Kate’s warrant card which was clearly in view still.
“Oh, he’s right there,” the cashier said, pointing to the young man with the shocked expression.
Patrick glanced between Kate and Nathan for a heartbeat.
“Patrick?” Nathan began.
He turned and ran.
Patrick sprinted through the front of the shop. Dropping his books, he knocked a few people out of the way in his bid to make the high street, and freedom.
“Goddammit,” Nathan cursed as Kate bolted after Patrick with Nathan hot on her heels. She threaded her way through the shop, shouting, “Police. Move,” as she went.
Within seconds she was out on the high street and turning left to follow Patrick up the road.
The high street sloped upwards, and she could clearly see Patrick a short distance ahead, his arms pumping as he ran up the hill as fast as he could. Kate focused on putting one foot in front of the other and kept her breathing even to avoid getting a stitch as she ran after him. The cobblestone road was uneven underfoot, and she was glad she wasn’t wearing anything with a bigger heel.
“Patrick, stop. We just want to talk,” she yelled after him as people dodged sideways to get out of the way. She glanced back to see Nathan still behind her, but he looked like he was flagging quicker than she was.
She’d probably have to apprehend this one herself.
As Patrick neared the Guildhall on the left of the high street, with its iconic black and gold clock projected out over the pedestrians below, he veered right. Opposite the Guildhall was Tunsgate Arch, an ornate building with pillars that served as the entrance onto Tunsgate Road.
He’d probably had enough of running up a hill, and this would be his route off of it.
She shouted at him again. “Police, stop!”
She could see that the hill had taken a toll on Patrick. He was moving at a much slower rate than he had been initially, as he made for the steps up into the archway. Forcing herself on, her thighs and calves burning from the run, Kate closed the gap.
Patrick misjudged the steps in his exhaustion, tripped over the top step, and stumbled, falling face-first on the ground.
Kate was only metres behind him and leapt up the four steps in a single bound just as Patrick was getting back to his feet. She pushed him back down and sat on him, gasping for breath.
“Gimmie your hands,” she ordered him, her voice breathless as she pulled her cuffs from the harness under her jacket.
“Patrick Norman, I am arresting you on suspicion of murder. You do not have to say anything. But it may harm your defence if you do not mention when questioned, something which you later rely on in court. Anything you do say may be given in evidence. Do you understand?”
The cuffs made that satisfying clicking noise as she secured his hands, but Patrick didn’t answer.
“Taking a breather are we, O’Connell?”
Kate looked up from where she’d basically sat on Patrick’s back and raised an eyebrow. “Shut it old man. At least I caught him.”
Nathan offered her his hand. “Up you get. Suspects are not furniture.”
“Ugh. But I was comfy,” she grunted as she got back to her feet. Her legs felt like jelly, so she moved to a nearby pillar and leant against it while Nathan pulled Patrick back to his feet. Around them, people had stopped to watch the arrest, with several of them filming it. With a sigh, Kate got her game face on and stepped away from the pillar.
“Go about your day, everyone. Move along. This is police business,” she said as she took hold of Patrick’s other arm and guided him back to their car.
They’d take him back to Horsley Station and get him booked in. Kate was looking forward to their forthcoming chat.
CHAPTER 14
“She didn’t do it,” Nathan said, sitting at his desk back at the station.
“How can you be so sure?” Kate asked.
“Robyn’s young and into the whole goth scene. That doesn’t make her a killer,” Nathan explained.
“And our friend downstairs?”
“Now, I think he’s a more likely candidate, but I’m still not convinced. The evidence is compelling, but I’m not sure it sits right with me yet.”
“I suppose Robyn’s statement of being home with him casts doubt on our theory,” Kate challenged him. “Unless they were in on it together?”
“I don’t know. I’m not sure I can see her committing murder of the kind we saw out there the other day.”
“So where do you think the suspicion lies?”
“As far as motive, Patrick’s is strong, but I’m not sure it’s enough to take things to the level of killing someone. Also, it sounds like Hunter was the main bully, not Jordan.”
“But Jordan ignored Robyn’s complaint and joined in.”
Nathan shrugged. “To me, I think Joanna and Naomi’s ex are stronger candidates.”
“If Joanna knew about the rumoured affair,” Kate added.
“True…”
“And if Steve is still on the scene with Naomi.”
“Also true,” Nathan admitted.
“That doesn’t explain the sacrificial nature of the death though.”
“I would guess that’s something we don’t know about yet.”
“Also, if it was Joanna, how on earth did she manage to string Jordan up to a tree? Would she be strong enough?”
“Maybe she had help.”
Kate smiled, noting the similarity to her idea that Robyn and Patrick were in on it together. “Touché.”
“We’ll see where it goes. I have people out looking for Steve, trying to track him down,” Nathan said, looking up as Rachel walked over to join them, stopping beside the big board.
“How’d it go?” Nathan asked.
“Nothing much to write home about, really. Chris and Darcy both have solid alibis for the time of death. Chris said he didn’t really get on well with Hunter West, but other than that, both of them seemed to get along with everyone in the office for the most part.”
“Hunter made his opinions about Chris’ love life clear to us as well,” Kate said.
“Oh, really?”
“Yeah, a bit of a dick by all accounts,” Kate answered.
“And the customers?” Nathan asked.
“Same. Good alibis and no motive,” Rachel said.
“I’ve got some of the investigators looking into the company’s client history,” Nathan added. “Just in case there’s a former customer that’s come back for revenge.”
“Sounds like a long shot,” Kate commented.
“In all likelihood. But we need to make sure we cover all options here,” Nathan explained. “What about Stacy Lee?”
“I spoke with her,” Rachel answered. “She confirms Wilson’s story that he was with her at the office that night.”
“More office romance?” Kate wondered out loud.
Rachel shrugged. “Just sounds like everyone’s getting it more than I am.”
“I’m sure DI Burnham would be happy to help with that,” Nathan commented.
“Oh, yuck. No thanks. I’d rather be celibate,” Rachel replied.
Nathan laughed. “Alright, thank you, Rachel. I’ll let you know if we need you again.”
Rachel moved off back to her desk as Kate settled into her chair and logged in.
“Autopsy report is in,” Nathan said over his shoulder, just as she spotted the notification on her screen.
“I see it,” she said, open
ing it up. She spent the next few minutes reading through it and making sure she understood what it was telling her.
“That’s mostly as we had guessed,” Nathan commented.
Kate nodded as she read through the conclusion again. It appeared that Jordan had been tortured while still alive and killed by the stab wound to the heart, which was nothing new, but Toxicology revealed traces of Ketamine in his system, which was likely used to keep him sedated for transportation.
“So, the killer choked Jordan to knock him out, pumped him full of Ketamine to keep him under, and transported him to the woods where he strung him up and tortured him to death,” Nathan summarised.
There was nothing found on Jordan that could lead to identifying the killer though, Kate noted with a little frustration.
“Ketamine. It’s used recreationally too,” Kate suggested. “I wonder if Patrick has used it before?”
“Well, let’s go find out, shall we?”
***
“Where were you on the night of the seventh?” Kate asked.
Patrick sat across the table from her and Nathan, head down, looking sullen, and thoroughly unhappy to be there. Beside him, the duty solicitor who had been assigned to Patrick took notes.
“I’ve told you, I was at home with Robyn.”
“Doing what? Kate asked.
“I don’t know.”
“You don’t know what you were doing?”
“Just the usual, like. You know, watching TV, playing Pub-G.”
“Pub-G?”
“PlayStation game,” he explained.
“Right. So, tell me about the sword?” Nathan asked.
“What about it?”
“Why do you have it?”
“Cos it looks nice. Not illegal, is it?” Patrick challenged him.
“Why did you run from us?” Kate asked.
“I don’t know. I panicked. I thought it might be about the drugs I’ve taken…”
“Do you take drugs often?” Kate pressed.
“Only when I’m stressed.”
“Like today?” Nathan asked.
Patrick shrugged.
“What about Ketamine? Have you ever used Ketamine, Patrick?” Kate continued.
“Once or twice. I prefer weed, though.”